


Happy 10 Years!

by PekoIsBaby



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Bisexual Hinata Hajime, Bisexual Naegi Makoto, But every ship listed is mentioned/referenced/implied somehow I promise, But he's getting better! :D, F/F, F/M, Feat. My Very Specific and Random Headcanons about Relationships, Gay Togami Byakuya, He/Him Pronouns for Fujisaki Chihiro, M/M, Multi, Naegami-centric, Oh my god so many characters, Other, This is such sappy bs fair warning, Togami Byakuya is Bad at Feelings, Trans Naegi Makoto, and ships, jeez louise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 06:56:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28684431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PekoIsBaby/pseuds/PekoIsBaby
Summary: The 77th and 78th class of Hope's Peak Academy go to Pride! Makoto reflects on the years that have brought all of them to this point together.
Relationships: Asahina Aoi/Ogami Sakura, Chou Koukou Kyuu no Sagishi | Ultimate Imposter/Hinata Hajime, Chou Koukou Kyuu no Sagishi | Ultimate Imposter/Mioda Ibuki, Fukawa Touko/Naegi Komaru, Hanamura Teruteru/Nidai Nekomaru, Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito, Hinata Hajime/Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko, Hinata Hajime/Nanami Chiaki, Ikusaba Mukuro/Maizono Sayaka, Ishimaru Kiyotaka/Oowada Mondo, Koizumi Mahiru/Saionji Hiyoko, Koizumi Mahiru/Tsumiki Mikan, Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko/Pekoyama Peko, Mioda Ibuki/Tsumiki Mikan, Naegi Makoto/Togami Byakuya, Nanami Chiaki/Sonia Nevermind, Nanami Chiaki/Tsumiki Mikan, Nidai Nekomaru/Owari Akane, Owari Akane/Tsumiki Mikan, Soda Kazuichi/Tanaka Gundham, Sonia Nevermind/Owari Akane, Sonia Nevermind/Pekoyama Peko
Comments: 16
Kudos: 93





	Happy 10 Years!

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this on DR's 10th anniversary and am posting it now! I love these games so much, and they mean so so much to me. Sorry that I can't get the third game in, but I haven't played it yet!
> 
> I love the idea of all of the kids living in the same huge apartment complex together. They are a CHAOTIC bunch.
> 
> The way that my SDR2 shipping works is that I can make it into a chart (and I have) where everyone's either romantically or queerplatonically involved into one giant polyamorous relationship
> 
> That is how big of a multishipper I am
> 
> It's not even funny
> 
> Oh, also: Imp/Imposter/The Ultimate Imposter are all names that I use for them, because they Don't Have A Real Name and I don't know what else to call them. 
> 
> Uhh Naegami owns my whole heart, I'd die for any of these ships, thank you.

Makoto Naegi fidgeted in front of a mirror, adjusting his pins and wiping accidental smudges of face paint off of his cheeks. 

“Makoto? Are you almost ready?” Across the apartment, Byakuya Togami (former heir to the Togami Corporation, and Makoto’s boyfriend of nearly a year) finished pinning a small rainbow pin to the lapel of his suit and glanced up. 

“Uh… yeah. Yeah. Just… just gimme a second.” Makoto used a fingernail to carefully scrape off a line of pink that had somehow found its way onto his lower jaw. 

“You do realize that your makeup is likely going to be ruined before the day is out, right?” 

“Yeah! Yeah, I do, but it’s…” Makoto tried to make the lines cleaner, adding a little purple to the center (he’d noticed a spot of pale skin in between the blue and purple). “I just want to look good. That’s all.” He was wearing his usual hoodie-jacket combo, but with a bisexual pride pin on one side and a transgender pride pin on the other. His cheeks had stripes to match. 

Byakuya opened his mouth to argue, but quickly snapped it shut. After a few minutes of Makoto fussing over absolutely nothing, however, he stood up and walked to the mirror, wrapping his arms around the smaller boy and resting his head on Makoto’s. “Alright. What’s really wrong?” 

“What?” 

“I’m not an _idiot_ , Makoto. Something’s bothering you, and I’d like very much to know what it is.” 

Makoto flushed pink under the face paint. “I’m… it’s fine. It’s nothing, it’s stupid.” Byakuya gave him a look. “What?” 

Byakuya raised his voice into a (frankly terrible) impression of Makoto. “Your feelings are never stupid, Byakuya! You shouldn’t feel insecure about being emotional, Byakuya! It’s okay to talk about your childhood trauma without feeling weak, Byakuya!” His voice dropped back to normal. “Practice what you preach, you little hypocrite.” 

“I don’t sound like that!” Makoto protested through giggles. 

“Really?” Byakuya asked, head cocked slightly. “I thought it was spot-on.” When Makoto didn’t respond, instead drifting his eyes back to the mirror, Byakuya sighed. “Alright. How long have you been wearing your binder?” 

“Oh! No, it’s not that. I didn’t sleep in it, so… yeah, I’m good on that one, ribs are thoroughly un-squished.” Makoto flashed a half-smile. 

“Good,” Byakuya said. “Then what _is_ it?” 

Makoto hesitated, before crossing over to the bed and sitting down. Byakuya followed suit. “You know how I felt when I first walked into Hope’s Peak Academy?” 

“You’ve mentioned it, yes. You were nervous, right?” 

“It’s a lot more complicated than that.” Makoto fiddled with the zipper on his hoodie as he spoke. “I was walking into a school that existed to showcase the best and brightest of the world, right? All of you guys were so confident, and smart, and brave, and talented, and I… I don’t know, I was just _me._ I was a part of your group, but I wasn’t… you know, I wasn’t a real Ultimate. I was just some dumb kid who’d wandered into the best school in the world, and… I mean, you said it plenty of times during school, I wasn’t anything special.” 

Byakuya cleared his throat, visibly uncomfortable. “Makoto, you know that I-” 

“I know!” Makoto smiled quickly, trying his best to reassure him. “I know you don’t feel that way anymore, but… I don’t know, it’s still hard. And, uh… now that we’re… I know I was really excited about Pride, and I still am, but… it feels like Hope’s Peak again, y’know? A community full of bright, proud, individualistic people who aren’t afraid to shout out who they are for the whole world to see, and… I’m not that, Byakuya. I’m just me.” 

Byakuya tensed. “We both know that’s not true.” 

“Do we?”

“ _Yes,_ ” Byakuya said sharply. “Makoto, you’re… god, do you have any idea? Everyone adores you.” 

“I know, I know, but-” 

“No, clearly you _don’t._ ” Byakuya closed his eyes and put a hand over his face as he spoke. “I’m not… I’m not the sentimental type, you know that, but god, Makoto, you’re… you’re smart, and you’re brave, and you’re impossibly kind, and if you think that I, Byakuya Togami, would ever deign to enter a relationship with someone who wasn’t absolutely exceptional in every single way, then you clearly don’t know me as well as you claim.” 

Makoto snorted. “That was the most backwards way I’ve ever been cheered up.” 

“I’m simply stating facts. You, Makoto Naegi, are the most wonderful person I have ever met, and that isn’t _boring,_ that’s inspiring. You make every single person you interact with a little better just by being near them. You realize what an incredible gift that is, don’t you?” 

“But… but I’m just _average._ The best thing you can say about me is that I’m nice.” 

“No, the best thing I can say about you is that you are _good._ You are inherently just and kind and hopeful. Makoto, Pride - and, for that matter, being an Ultimate - shouldn’t be about winning some kind of aesthetic competition. If it were, you wouldn’t have won anyway, since I’m going with you, but…” He held up a finger. “I’m getting away from the point. You’re enough, Makoto. More than enough, really. For a parade, for a school, and certainly for the people around you.” 

Makoto opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a loud banging on the door of their shared apartment. “Makoto? Byakuya? Are you in there?” 

“Bro, please, you’re going to knock their fuckin’ door down.” 

“I assure you, this door is structurally sound enough to-”

“Yes, we’re coming!” Makoto yelled, shutting both men up. He turned to Byakuya, half-smiling. “Thank you. You’re also good.” 

Byakuya stared at the wall opposite him for a count of two, and then stood up, straightening his suit jacket and pretending that he wasn’t blushing. He picked up a giant pride flag and slung it over his shoulder by a lazy fingertip. “Shall we?” 

Makoto picked up his own pride flag, wrapping it around himself like a blanket. “Yeah!” 

They opened the door to see Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Mondo Owada, and Sayaka Maizono standing in front of them. Sayaka (whose cheeks matched Makoto’s--they’d done them together, and hers looked _far_ neater) immediately pulled Makoto into a hug. “Oh, you look so _cute,_ Makoto! With all of us put together, we’re going to be the best-dressed group in the entire parade!” 

“Same to you, Sayaka.” Makoto let go of his friend to address Taka. “Where is everyone?” 

Taka, who was sharing a large pride flag with Mondo (oh, my god, could the two of them _get_ any cuter?), pressed his lips together. “I have been doing my absolute best to gather everyone in the lobby, but, unfortunately, it appears that preparation may be taking a bit longer for everyone else!”

“Or _maybe_ everyone else didn’t wake up at 6 in the goddamn morning and wake up anyone else who might be trying to sleep in the fucking apartment-” Mondo’s grumbles were cut off by Taka giving him a quick peck on the cheek. 

“Punctuality is everything, Mondo, you should know this by now!” Taka returned his attention to Makoto. “I’ll try to get everyone outside.” Leaning over the stairwell of the large apartment complex (everyone else followed suit), Taka raised his voice. “Is everyone nearly ready to go?” 

A brown-haired head poked out from two floors down. “Me and Sakura have been ready for about ten minutes!” Hina brightened. “Oh, hi Makoto!” 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Taka yelled back down. 

“I thought you would come get us!” 

“Why are we screaming?” Kyoko Kirigiri opened her door, stepping out and approaching the group. 

“We’re going to be late if we don’t get everyone in order!” 

“Our group is practically half the parade,” Kyoko said dryly. “I’m not entirely sure they _can_ start without us. Plus, Sayaka and Ibuki are performing, so-” 

“Did somebody say Ibuki Mioda?” The girl in question practically jumped out from behind a pillar. She lived five floors down. How did she get here? 

“Jesus Christ!” Kyoko jumped so hard she nearly fell over the side of the stairs. “Is that _really_ necessary?” 

“Yup!” Ibuki flashed a thumbs up, the bisexual pride flags that she’d somehow inserted into her hair waving with the tilt of her head. She was so high-energy it almost made Makoto tired by association. 

“Anyone else want to make an appearance?” Taka yelled down the stairway. 

“Stop yelling, you fuckin’ bastard, we get it!” Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu, cheeks painted pink, purple, and blue, poked his head from the floor below. “Peko just needs a minute!” 

“I am trying to figure out if bringing a sword into a pride parade will get me into legal trouble,” came a voice from that floor. “Taka, do you have any thoughts?” 

“I’m pretty sure that’s extremely illegal, as a matter of fact!” 

A disappointed hum. “Maybe I’ll paint one of my swords rainbow. Then it isn’t a weapon, it’s just me showing off my pride.” 

“Fuck yeah, gray areas!” Fuyuhiko high-fived someone (presumably Peko) out of Makoto’s line of sight. “Uh… anyway, we’ll be there soon. I think Kazuichi’s struggling to get Gundham out of his room, so they might be a while.” 

As if on cue, a voice called out from elsewhere on the floor. “Your makeup looks fucking fine, come on, let’s get _going!_ ”

“You could not possibly understand the intricacies of-” 

“Oh my god, Taka’s actually going to kill us.” 

“I assure you, one as low-level as he could never commit violence against you. I would protect you until my dying breath.” 

“Very sweet, but I’m more scared of Taka than I am of you. Just… fine, let me help.” 

As the two of them bickered, Sonia Nevermind, bedecked in more flags, pins, and jewelry than Makoto had ever seen in his life, came up the stairs to greet Makoto and the rest of the crew. Alongside her were Celestia Ludenburg (wearing no flags, but having painted her nails in shades of pink, white, and blue), and Chihiro Fujisaki, who had a pan pride flag draped around his shoulders. “Oh, good! You’re here. I’ve come to let you know that Toko and Komaru left without us.” 

“They _what?_ ” Taka’s volume was only increasing, and Mondo gently placed a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down. 

“They said that they would meet us at the parade,” Celeste interjected. “I mentioned that Taka probably wouldn’t like it, but they insisted.” 

Celeste was right. Taka didn’t like it. “They’re… but we made a plan, we had a plan, and- what if we can’t find them? This would have been infinitely simpler and more concise had everyone stuck to the agreement that we made _weeks_ ago to-” 

“Hey, bro?” Mondo still had his hand on Taka’s shoulder, and he squeezed gently. “Wanna take a breather?” 

As Mondo led Taka away, Ibuki took over the yelling over the balcony. “Hey hey, everybody! We’re trying to get this show on the road, so holler if you need more time, or we’re gonna drag you out of your rooms kicking and screaming!” 

“Hm?” A light blur appeared on one of the lowest floors. “What’s happening?” After a moment, Makoto recognized the voice as a half-asleep Chiaki Nanami. 

“We’re trying to get ready to go!” 

“Oh. I just woke up.” She turned around. “Hajime, do we have breakfast going?” 

“Uh, yeah. Nagito’s making pancakes or… something.” 

For a moment, the entire building fell perfectly silent. Then, from another floor, “do you want me to make something to take on the road?” 

“Yes, very much, thank you.” Hajime appeared next to Chiaki. “Yeah, we’ll be ready in a couple. Does anyone have an extra bi flag? I’m loaning mine to Chiaki.” 

“I have _so many!_ ” Ibuki yelled, waving her hand over the railing. “Do you want a big one, or one of those little ones, or a pin, or-” 

“Whatever you have!” 

“Hey, does anyone have any hot sauce?” The second member of Hajime Hinata’s veritable harem came up behind him, calling out over the balcony.

“ _Why_ do you need hot sauce to make fucking pancakes?”

Nagito shrugged. “I like the feeling of my tongue burning.” 

“Can we please leave Nagito?” Hiyoko called out from the floor above. “He’s gonna bring the whole vibe down.”

“If Nagito stays, then I stay!” Hajime yelled. 

“Oh, and what a horrible pity that would be,” Hiyoko grumbled. Mahiru, coming to stand beside her on the balcony, shot her a look (well, technically it was far away enough that Makoto couldn’t see, but he’d known the two girls long enough to have a clear image in his mind). “Fine, the nutcase can stay, but only if he stays far away from me! I'm sticking with Mahiru and Ibuki, and if anyone else gets near me I'll get you arrested.” 

“Hey, Hajime?” Ibuki called down. “Have you seen Imp?” 

Byakuya’s eyes narrowed. “Are they really coming?” 

“They’re part of the group, ‘Kuya,” Makoto reminded him gently. “Even if you don't like them.” 

“‘Don’t like’ is putting it rather mildly, wouldn’t you say?” 

“Yeah, Ibuki, they’re with us. They’re trying to keep Nagito from… hey, Nagito, what exactly are you doing?” 

“Setting the pancakes on fire!” 

“ _Fucking why though?_ ” 

“I figure that, with my luck, they’ll get put out at exactly the right moment and we’ll have pancakes faster.” 

Even from far away, Hajime looked like he wanted to jump off of the stairs. “Nagito, my other boyfriend is the heir to the yakuza and he's still significantly less dangerous than you."

"I know!"

"Uh… who’s missing?” 

Taka took this opportunity to reappear. “So, we’re missing Mikan, Nekomaru, Akane, Leon, Hiro, Junko, and Mukuro.” 

“Oh, Mukuro’s back in my room! I can go get her.” Sayaka bounced back down the stairs. Makoto leaned over the railing. 

“Sayaka, why is Mukuro Ikusaba in your room?” 

“No reason! Yet!” 

At this point, Makoto could see that people were gathering in the lobby. Hina, Sakura, the Ultimate Imposter (Ibuki gasped and ran downstairs to join them, yelling something about how they should “let Mikan know where she is!” as she went), Hajime, Chiaki, Nagito, Hiyoko, and Mahiru were already there. As he watched, Celeste, Chihiro, and Sonia joined them, and Kazuichi (dragging Gundham) wasn’t far behind. Absently, Makoto wondered if there was anyone in the 77th class of Hope’s Peak Academy that wasn’t somehow tied up in the giant polyamorous relationship. He got about three people in before he decided it wasn’t worth mapping out. 

The door to Nekomaru and Akane’s room slammed open, and the man himself strode out with the confidence of one who has conquered God. “I was taking a shit! What’s happening?” 

“Aw, man, are we late?” Akane followed behind him, wearing a shirt that read “Bisexu-whale” and eating a piece of toast. 

“In fairness, everyone sort of is,” Makoto assured her. “Just go down to the lobby, alright?” Akane and Nekomaru obliged, and, after a minute, Mondo and Taka followed them, mumbling something about “Overseeing those who are ready to leave” (Taka) and “being fucking tired of yelling” (Mondo). That left Byakuya and Makoto. They watched as more people - Teruteru (going over to Nekomaru's side), who looked like he was about to murder Nagito for food crimes; Mikan, who ran up to her three girlfriends - _four,_ Makoto silently corrected himself as Mahiru came up behind her - to show them her giant pride flag; Hifumi Yamada, who just looked happy to be included in something; Leon, dragging a clearly half-asleep Hiro behind him; Fuyuhiko and Peko, the latter of whom had the bi flag on her left cheek and was, indeed, carrying her sword bag; Sayaka and Mukuro, for whom Makoto had _many_ questions; and, finally, Junko Enoshima, who looked incredibly bored and who Makoto was pretty sure was mildly homophobic (who invited her?) - coalesced in the lobby. Makoto grinned, standing on his tip-toes to pull Byakuya into a kiss. 

“This is going to be really fun, isn’t it?”

Byakuya smiled - a real smile, one that had been hard-earned and incredibly worth the effort - and ruffled Makoto’s stupid hair. “I think so, yes.” 

The walk to the actual parade was chaotic. The group had always been pretty loud, and, considering that the group was entirely composed of gay idiots, that was increased twofold during the entire month of June. Ibuki was somewhere in front, dragging Mikan and Imp ahead with her, shouting something completely incomprehensible. Nearby Makoto, Kyoko walked with the confidence that he’d come to so closely associate with her, Celeste explaining a card game that he’d never heard of while Kyoko listened in half-amused interest. Nagito poked him in the back, asking him something about if it was nice to be in a relationship with someone so far above him. Byakuya nearly bit his head off for that one, but then he softened, held Makoto’s hand, and didn’t let go. There was something so ridiculously sweet and wonderful about this group of stupid friends. Makoto’s chest tightened. He loved them all so, so much. 

“Makoto, are you doing alright?” Byakuya was staring at him, and Makoto realized that he was nearly crying. 

“Yeah,” Makoto said, using the edge of his pride flag to wipe his eyes, a smile never leaving his face. “I’m better than alright. You guys are such dorks.” 

The worry in Byakuya’s eyes melted away, and he pulled Makoto close. “You’re right there with us, love.” 

Makoto hugged him back, eyes filling again with tears. 

The actual parade was ridiculously fun. Ibuki opened for Sayaka, pulling off a performance that left Makoto’s ears ringing but somehow raised everyone’s spirits anyway (except for Kazuichi, who had something of a meltdown and had to be taken aside by Gundham). After Sayaka put on her performance (the crowd lost their entire shit), she hopped back down, slinging her arms around Mukuro (who looked like she might faint) and giggling as the crowd swarmed their (admittedly huge) group. 

Makoto spent the rest of the day being bounced between friends - Byakuya looked vaguely ill at the prospect of being left to his own devices, but Makoto privately assigned Mondo and Taka to watch him and make sure he didn’t commit arson or have a panic attack - and looking for his sister and her girlfriend, who he finally found at a food stall. 

“Hey, Makoto!” Komaru spoke around a mouthful of takoyaki. Toko looked up to see him, and immediately her face lit up.

“M-Makoto! We worried you c-couldn’t make it!” She looked around. “W-where is everyone e-else?” 

As if in answer, Nekomaru ran by, Akane screaming like a madwoman as she chased him, nearly barreling into Kazuichi and Celeste (what they had been talking about, Makoto would never want to know). Makoto wordlessly pointed to the group. 

“Your friends are all probably insane,” Komaru observed. 

“Yeah, they’re great.” Makoto glanced at Toko as he spoke, because, better than anyone, she understood. 

They were Ultimates. They were stupid, and over the top, and probably too socially awkward to ever have survived polite society. It was almost funny: As much as Nagito talked about hope, he didn’t really understand what it meant. The hope that came from the success of the students of Hope’s Peak wasn’t in their careers, or their talents, or the special ‘stuff’ that made them get into the school. 

The hope was Kazuichi, telling off some street vendor for laughing at Gundham (Fuyuhiko was busy attempting to physically restrain Sonia). 

The hope was Taka, who was shrieking at the top of his lungs about how _exciting_ all of this was, having his arm wrapped around Mondo, while cold, quiet Kyoko looked at the two of them with so much _fondness_ and was met with the same expression. 

The hope was Peko, who ordered off of a menu that Fuyuhiko had never glanced at and paid with money she’d made entirely on her own, who turned around to see that Chihiro was _begging_ her to show him the sword. 

The hope was Celeste, who wore goth lolita dresses and used a fake name and a fake accent and liked her tea in a _very specific way_ , being revered as a cool, popular student, being loved for her individuality, for her oddness. 

With a smile, Makoto met Byakuya’s eyes, and thought that hope was a boy who’d never been shown love his entire life learning how to comfort, and be vulnerable, and ask after someone’s health, and admit when he wasn’t having a good day. 

Hope was Sayaka and Leon and Mukuro and Chihiro and Mondo and Taka and Celeste and Hifumi and Sakura and Hina and Byakuya and Kyoko and Toko and Hiro and Komaru and the Ultimate Imposter and Teruteru and Mahiru and Peko and Hiyoko and Ibuki and Mikan and Nekomaru and Kazuichi and Gundham and Sonia and Akane and Fuyuhiko and Hajime and Nagito and Chiaki. The hope was in all of them, finding a community together, one that accepted and cherished their oddness, one that shared their talents and skills and wonderful eccentricities with one another. Makoto was a part of the group because he loved and because he was loved. _That_ was what Hope’s Peak Academy gave to the world: Weird, awkward people with so much love in their hearts, capable of sharing it and expressing it throughout the planet. With a chuckle, Makoto wondered why it was any surprise that basically everyone in the group was queer. 

“Are you thinking in cursive again?” Komaru poked her brother’s cheek. 

“Yeah, kinda,” Makoto admitted. “But I think I’m really onto something!” 

“I-is the something r-related to Byakuya? Y-you were st-staring at him for, l-like, a solid t-thirty seconds.” Toko nudged him, grinning. 

“Oh, do we really wanna go there?” Makoto wheeled on her, eyebrows raised in challenge. Toko squeaked and shook her head vehemently. Komaru smacked Makoto. 

“You! Go talk to your fellow dipshits. I’m gonna work very hard to not think about my girlfriend simping over your boyfriend.” 

Hands raised in defeat, Makoto backed away, going to find Byakuya again. His eyes lit up when he saw Imp (who was almost always watching Byakuya to a certain extent). They were deep in conversation with their boyfriend, but Makoto tracked the flick of their eyes to Byakuya Togami, talking to Peko Pekoyama. Makoto strolled up carefully to make sure he wasn’t interrupting anything. 

“Wait, no, stop. A duck isn’t a threat, no matter _how_ big it is.” As though punctuating his point, Byakuya pushed up his glasses. 

“Take it from someone who has lost the trust of many animals throughout her life: Ducks don’t know fear. You would do well to avoid them, especially if they’re horse-sized.” 

“So you’d really be comfortable with killing 100 tiny horses? Doesn’t that go against… I don’t know, some kind of animal cruelty rule?” 

“I did not say that I would kill them. The rules said ‘fight’. I will break their tiny legs, and leave them to heal wrong so that they will no longer pose any threat to me.” Peko spoke with calm complacency, but her eyes were deadly serious. 

Byakuya blinked. “Ah. That… that’ll do it.” 

“Hey, not to butt in…” Makoto sidled up next to Byakuya. “But what, pray tell, could the two of you _possibly_ be talking about?” 

“Oh! Makoto!” Peko turned, visibly excited to see him. “Would you rather fight 100 duck-sized horses, or 1 horse-sized duck?” 

“Is ‘or’ an option?” 

“No, it’s not. There’s a correct answer here, clearly. Tell her, Naegi.” 

“Uh… okay, so there’s no way I can fight a horse-sized _anything,_ but I think that emotionally speaking I’d feel less bad about hurting a giant duck, so I’ll go with that one. It doesn’t say I have to _win_ the fight.” 

“And _that,_ ” Byakuya said, pulling Makoto to his side with a satisfied smirk, “is why I love you.” 

“Because I validate your arguments about monster ducks?”

“Exactly.” Byakuya leaned down to kiss him. 

“Love you, too.” 

Peko cleared her throat. “I’m still here.” She didn’t look too offended, instead feigning a cool expression to hide a smile. It was a losing battle. “I will leave the two of you to your own devices. Have you seen Fuyuhiko?” 

“Last I checked, he was trying to keep your girlfriend from committing a murder,” Makoto said. Peko nodded solemnly and walked into the crowd, calling for Sonia and Fuyuhiko. 

“Are you having a good time?” Byakuya asked. 

“Yeah! Great, actually.” 

“I’m glad. I am, too.” Byakuya looked down. “I’ve grown rather accustomed to having people in my life that I trust unconditionally.”

“Sap.” Makoto was so, so in love with him. Byakuya could clearly tell, because he let out a quiet laugh and didn’t tease back. 

They stood there, holding hands, pride flags brushing together as they listened to Hajime scream at his boyfriend (“ _just admit it was a shitty idea!”_ ) and Hiyoko absolutely lost her shit cackling, while Mikan nearly tripped over her own lesbian pride flag and Ibuki caught her (with a stupid wink, because it was Ibuki). Everywhere around them was _life_ and _love_ and more hope than Makoto had felt in years. And, as he watched Nagito listen to Hajime yell at him with a genuine half-smile on his face, he wondered if the admittedly odd boy understood it better than he’d ever given him credit for. 

The students of Hope’s Peak Academy held hands with their loved ones, and sang along to the music that blared from the speakers, and screamed their made-up slogans (whatever “GAY RIGHTS MEANS FUCKING IN A SAUNA” meant, Makoto wasn’t sure he wanted to know). They were happy. All of them were here together, celebrating something that meant _so much_ to them, and they were happy. 

Byakuya straightened (well, no, but) suddenly. “Makoto.”

“Yeah?” 

“Do you realize what day it is?” 

“Uh… June… somethingth…?” 

“How you are a functioning human adult, I may never know. But, no, this was… if I’m remembering correctly, actually, we all met ten years ago today.” 

Makoto stared at him. “What? How?” 

“Orientation, remember? A little under a year before we began attending Hope’s Peak? The 77th class showed us around the school, we all played stupid ice-breaker games that didn’t break any ice whatsoever, but… still, this is the day we all met.” 

Makoto laughed. “Oh, my god, I completely forgot!” He grinned, raising his voice. “Happy 10 years, everyone!” 

“What?” Mahiru yelled out in response. 

“Happy 10 years!” Ibuki shouted. “Also, 10 years of what?” 

Makoto laughed. “10 years of us being stupid and making each other happy, what else?” 

“Oh!” Ibuki gave a quick thumbs up. “Happy 10 years!” 

Byakuya pressed a kiss into Makoto’s hair. “Happy 10 years.” 

Happy 10 years. 

**Author's Note:**

> Happy 10 years! Well, a little more at this point, I'm late haha. 
> 
> Thank you for reading, and thank you to Danganronpa for getting me through some really rough times. I'm so happy that I got involved with this piece of media, and I can't wait to see more of it!


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